About Ikuta & Co.

Welcome to Ikuta & Co. We are craftspeople with a more than 60-year history of handmaking top-quality bags.
Currently we specialize solely in the randsel, which we create and sell at our workshop and storefront in Ikuno Ward, Osaka.
We handle every stage of production of genuine leather randsel, from cutting the material to putting on the finishing touches.
With origins in the Netherlands (from which its name derives), the randsel is a backpack used by Japanese schoolchildren, made so durably that it lasts through all six years of elementary school.
Today, in addition to being ruggedly built, randsel are available in a range of stylish colors and designs, with a focus on safety features as well.
Recently they have also become popular fashion accessories among Hollywood actresses and other celebrities outside Japan...
perhaps this is what led you to our website!

Our Craftmanship

At Ikuta & Co., we make each genuine leather randsel lovingly by hand, with the fine craftsmanship associated with the phrase "Made in Japan".
In general, randsel are made from either imitation leather or real leather, and while some factories mass-produce them using streamlined, efficient methods, workshops like ours still craft them by hand. The randsel we offer are at the high end of the price spectrum, but we are confident that their actual value exceeds their price tag because of their genuine leather material, handcrafting, and in-house production from start to finish.
We also offer the opportunity to watch our artisans at work in the workshop, free of charge.

Randsel: Sturdy & Easy to Care For

Do you feel that caring for genuine leather bags is a lot of work? As for randsel, they were originally developed for schoolchildren, meaning they are both sturdy and easy to care for. While leather in its natural state is prone to water damage, randsel are given a water-resistant coating, and even if they get wet or soiled, it wipes right off! Our randsel are built ultra-rugged, given a strengthening treatment so they won't lose their shape, and are perfectly suitable for transporting tablets, laptops, and so forth.

Time-travel back through the centuries! Osaka Castle was built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and rebuilt by the Tokugawa Shogunate, rulers during the Edo Period (1603-1867). Designated as a National Historic Site.

1400 years ago, Prince Shōtoku erected the Shitenno-zo (statues of the Four Heavenly Kings) with prayers for victory in battle. When these prayers were answered, this Buddhist temple was built to enshrine the statues.